Samsung recently conducted an audit of 105 of its Chinese suppliers over a four-week period. It did this after China Labor Watch reported on the hardware maker's suppliers, and decided to correct any problems immediately.

About 121 certified Samsung employees conducted the audit, and while they failed to find any instances of child labor, the employees did discover excessive overtime hours, a system of fines for lateness or absences, and inadequate management of supplier companies with copies of labor contracts.

To address these issues and prevent anything else from happening, Samsung has announced a new set of rules for hiring and employee management within its suppliers in China.

Currently, Samsung is making sure all hiring candidates are interviewed in person to detect fake IDs; demanding suppliers to buy electronic devices that detect fake IDs, and deploying special guidelines for banning child labor.

By the end of 2012, Samsung plans to get rid of the fines/penalty system, prohibit any hiring discrimination, force suppliers to offer adequate safety equipment/first aid kits, train employees about sexual harassment and physical/verbal abuse and install hotlines for employees to anonymously report abuse.

For the excessive working hours, Samsung will create a long-term plan for resolving this issue by the end of 2012 and force suppliers to cap temporary workers at a schedule that is 30 percent of full-time employees. It will also tailor plans to fit each supplier and financially support the Chinese suppliers for extra hiring and equipment.

Earlier this year, The New York Times published its second installment of its iEconomy series, which focused on the treatment of workers at Apple's suppliers over in China. This included overtime, low pay and poor conditions. Apple and Foxconn have been working with the Fair Labor Association (FLA) to patch these issues up.